Finding Hope Again
by shannyfish
Summary: Harm and Mac's lives are drastically changed when their daughter is kidnapped, but years later…will a case lead them back to her?
1. Life Changed Forever

**Disclaimer:** I do not own JAG, USA and CBS and uhhhh ummm those other people who make JAG own it. But not me : )  
  
**Summary:** Harm and Mac's lives are drastically changed when their daughter is kidnapped, but years later…will a case lead them back to her?  
  
**Author's Note:** For those of you that are wondering what the heck I'm doing writing this fic with "Occupational Hazards" and "With You Always" not finished, actually leaving you hanging cause they each only have one more chapter to go. Well there IS a simple explanation, my grandmother died about a month ago and so I had to go back to New York for about a week and I continued to work on them while I was there and then I came back and ended up moving and training for a new job. And somewhere along the disk my JAG disk got damaged and it wouldn't let me open "Occupational Hazards", so I have to totally reconstruct the last chapter. And "With You Always" is 97% done and will be up soon! So now that I've drabbled on for forever…  
  
**Story Note: **This story does take place in the future in 2004 AND in 2007 so be prepared! And yes once again I DO torture Mac and Harm and make their lives miserable…ummm oops?  
  
  
  
**_  
JAG  
"Finding Hope Again"_**  
  
**  
Chapter 1 - Life Changed Forever**  
  
**  
12.25.04  
1800 Zulu  
Georgetown Memorial Hospital  
Georgetown, Virginia**  
  
"Rest now, Sarah…" Harm said soothingly. He smoothed her hair hoping to help calm her enough to sleep. She needed it. He knew she did. She had just been probably one of the most draining ordeals in a woman's life. Childbirth. Their first child. A daughter. A perfect new little life that belonged to them.   
  
"I want to hold her…" Sarah MacKenzie-Rabb cried weakly. She hadn't been able to hold her daughter yet and she had delivered her more than two hours before. Her little girl had had trouble breathing and was immediately taken away. She hadn't even gotten to see her little face. Tears ran down her face.  
  
"Sarah, the doctors say she'll be fine…they're taking care of her right now. Please just rest. God sent us a miracle, you're both fine and our little baby girl is going to be just fine."  
  
"Then why can't I hold her?!"  
  
"Because they're keeping a close eye on her and don't want her moved out of isolation just yet."  
  
"But she's going to be okay?!" Sarah asked panicking. She wanted to see her baby so badly and the doctors had only talked to Harm.  
  
"Sarah, you need to calm down, okay?"  
  
Sarah nodded and tried to calm down, but something popped into her head. "Did you tell them her name?! What if she's scared and she doesn't know what's going on and wants me and-"  
  
"Sarah, CALM down…she's going to be fine and I told them her name and wrote it down. Sydelle Saree Rabb," he recited. "They know, believe me they know."  
  
"I…just...want…to…se-" Sarah Rabb feel asleep without finishing her sentence.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
  
**1936 Zulu  
Georgetown Memorial Hospital  
Georgetown, Virginia**  
  
Admiral AJ Chegwidden stood by Sarah Rabb's bedside. He had come to see the baby and check on the new parents, but ended up relieving Harm so he could get coffee. He finally decided to take a seat. As he sat the power went out. "What the hell…" Chegwidden stood up and looked over at where he knew Sarah lay and remembered what she was hooked up to and knew she was in no danger since it looked like the machines had gone off. He shook her a bit, "Mac…Sarah…wake up."  
  
"Admiral?" she asked through the darkness.  
  
"The power went out…"  
  
"Harm? Sydelle?! My baby!" Sarah said panicking and started to move trying to figure out how to get out of bed.  
  
"Don't you dare move," Chegwidden warned. "Harm is getting coffee…and your baby is safe in the nursery."  
  
The power returned.  
  
Harm ran into the room and immediately looked Sarah over, "you okay?!"  
  
Sarah smiled at him, "I think so…the admiral helped me from panicking…maybe I'm still afraid of the dark… Can you check on the baby?"  
  
Harm nodded and walked out of his wife's hospital room and headed for the nursery viewing window.  
  
Mac waited patiently as the admiral reassured her that everything was okay, that the power had just gone out, and that it wasn't a big deal.   
  
After a few minutes Harm came running into Mac's room looking panicked.  
  
"Harm?" Mac questioned suddenly feeling very worried.  
  
"Commander?" Chedwiggen also questioned raising an eyebrow.  
  
"The baby is missing," he said obviously panicked.   
  
Mac just sat in her bed in total and complete shook trying to take in what her husband had said. 'Sydelle? TAKEN!?!'  
  
"Explain," the admiral said calmly trying to keep the illusion of calmness.  
  
"I went to check on Sydelle and she's gone! I asked the nurses and they don't have any idea! They said she was there before the blackout but don't know where she is…" Harm tried to explain as calm as possible.  
  
"She's been kidnapped," Mac breathed in panic and yet still in shock.  
  
Both Harm and Chedwiggen were relieved that she hadn't bolted, and started demanding that they find Sydelle and search everywhere. Even though that's what they both wanted to do.  
  
"Commander, stay here with your wife. I'll take care of the situation."  
  
"Thank you," Harm said sincerely and walked over to Mac pulling her into his arms.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
**TBC...**


	2. Life Goes On 2 years, 5 months, and 29 d...

**OCC:** hopefully I got the Zulu time correct *sighs* its harder than when they're in Virginia had to make myself a conversation table…  
  
  
**Chapter 2 - Life Goes On… (2 Years, 5 Months, 29 days Later…)  
  
06.23.07  
1500 Zulu  
JAG Headquarters  
Falls Church, Virginia**  
  
Commander Harmon Rabb Jr. and Colonel Sarah MacKenzie-Rabb entered JAG. Tiner spotted them before they could pick up their mail or messages. "Commander! Colonel!" Tiner shouted and ran over to them.  
  
"Yes, Tiner?" Harm answered turning to face him.  
  
"The admiral wants to see you both in his office."  
  
"I thought you weren't relaying messages for the admiral, Tiner," Mac said half amused.  
  
"I'm not, Ma'am, but I…well," Tiner stopped to think exactly why he was still doing it. It hadn't been his job for almost two years now, but every now and then he and the admiral forgot.  
  
"Thank you Tiner," Harm said smiling and then looked over at his wife and noticed that she looked miserable and checking her watch. "Mac? You okay?" Even though they were married he still called her Mac, especially at work.  
  
She looked up at him with tears in her eyes.  
  
Harm's heart immediately saddened, he hated seeing her so upset, but she seemed to be constantly upset since their daughter had been declared missing. It had been well over two years and he knew the one thing that had kept them both going was JAG. He took her arm and lead her to his office, closed the door, closed the blinds, and then pulled her into his arms. "What's wrong?" he asked gently holding her and swaying a bit.  
  
"Do you know what day it is?" she asked him quietly and obviously upset.  
  
"June twenty-third," he said.  
  
"She…she…would be two and a…h..half in two days Harm," she struggled to explain her upset.  
  
Tears began to fill his eyes also, he had forgotten. Not their daughter, but the date's significance. It hadn't registered in his brain. He wiped her tears and kept his tears from falling. "I know, but we need to go see the admiral now. Are you going to be okay?" he asked mentally kicking himself for not remembering. Why hadn't he?! It wasn't like they didn't think of her everyday. Mac had had a dream the day before about their baby, Harm knew everything was so much harder because neither had even SEEN their daughter before she disappeared.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
**0455 Zulu  
06.23.07  
Seal Beach Naval Base  
Seal Beach, California**  
  
Harm, Mac, and Sturgis had been sent to investigate the disappearance of a US Navy couple's missing daughter. It was too late to check in with the couple, by they did manage to check in with the base and get a two room temporary house on the base.   
  
"So, what information do we have?" Harm asked Sturgis as he entered with food for all of them.  
  
"Well, it's a Major Robert Collins and 1st Lieutenant Jennifer Collins, they've been stationed here for two years and about five or six months. They were restationed here right after the birth of their daughter, Sydney Elle Collins.  
  
Mac dropped her head into her hands.   
  
"Mac?" Sturgis questioned as he set food down on the table.  
  
Harm looked back at her as well. "Sarah, you okay?"  
  
She nodded not moving her head from her hands.  
  
"What's wrong?" Harm pushed.  
  
"This little girl is the same age as…" Mac stopped herself.  
  
"As Sydelle would have been," Harm finished.  
  
"AND her name is SYDney ELLE!" Mac said becoming more and more upset. She got up, walked into the bathroom and slammed the door.  
  
'Mac was right,' Harm thought. 'There was a lot that was connecting this case to their daughter, but that didn't mean anything.' They still had a job to do.  
  
"She going to be okay?" Sturgis asked pulling the food out of their bags.  
  
"I'm not sure…look Sturgis, would you mind taking lead on this case?"  
  
"Actually I was just going to suggest that."  
  
"Thanks," Harm said, he was happy his friend understood.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
**  
06.24.03  
1600 Zulu  
Seal Beach Naval Base  
Seal Beach, California**  
  
Commander Turner was escorted to the Collins Residence on base and knocked after his escort left. Sturgis waited patiently until a distraught women in uniform answered the door. 'Lt Jennifer Collins,' Sturgis reminded himself.   
  
"What can I do for you, Commander?" Jennifer Collins asked kindly obviously trying to compose herself.  
  
"I'm Commander Sturgis Turner, I'm here from JAG. Myself and two other officers have been assigned to investigate the disappearance of your daughter…"  
  
A man came to the door also in uniform, "please. Come in." They stepped aside and lead Sturgis to their living room area. "Please, have a seat, Commander." As soon as Sturgis sat, they sat across from them. "Is there anyway we can help with your investigation?"  
  
Sturgis was a bit surprised, "uhh well I was wondering if I could have a recent picture if possible. The local authorities have one, but-"  
  
"Of course, I'll get you one," Jennifer Collins interrupted and went off to find a picture.  
  
"Commander? You'll find our little girl?" Major Robert Collins asked.  
  
"We'll do our best, I also had a few other requests that could help with our investigation."  
  
"Of course. What can I do?"  
  
"Sydney is a small child and can easily be slightly changed to make her unnoticeable. We'd like to have her medical information, including her hand and foot prints taken at birth if possible."  
  
"Of course," Robert responded. "I'll have our base medic send them to you. As for the prints I think Jennifer put them in Sydney's scrapbook."  
  
Jennifer walked out with a white and pink photo album. "I didn't know which picture to give you…maybe this will help?" Jennifer said offering Sturgis the album, which he accepted. "There's a picture of Sydney in there for almost every month…"  
  
"If not every week," Robert Collins added. "My wife likes to take pictures…"  
  
Jennifer nodded, "and her prints are all in there even finger prints she had taken at this special thing they had at school…and there's hair from when she was a baby…"  
  
Sturgis stood up holding the book, "this is be /very/ helpful. I assure you we'll do everything we can to find your daughter."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
**TBC...**


	3. Coincidence?

**Author's Note: **even though it /may/ seem very clear that Sydney and Sydelle are one in the same, please have faith that I'm not going to wrap this story up in one chapter…there are still unknowns…I /do/ have over 55 stories archived here…I know what I'm doing : )  
**  
  
Chapter 3 - Coincidence?  
  
  
06.24.03  
1630 Zulu  
Seal Beach Naval Base  
Seal Beach, California**  
  
Sturgis walked into the house he, Harm, and Mac had been given to stay and work out of. Mac was sitting at the kitchen table with an elbow on the table which supported the hand her chin was in. She looked miserable. Harm was leaning on a counter behind her obviously watching her and worried. "What'd you find?" Harm asked.  
  
"Nothing. I just asked for a picture…" Sturgis answered.  
  
"It looks like you got a lot more than a picture," Harm said pointing to the album underneath Sturgis' arm.  
  
Mac's eyes lit up, "can I see it?"  
  
"Mac…I know you think that this is-"  
  
"My little girl has been missing for two and a half years tomorrow! The little girl who is missing here is the same age as Sydelle!" Mac yelled angrily getting to her feet, and realized she hadn't said her daughter's name in so long. Tears began to form in her eyes as she took a step towards Sturgis and was held in place by Harm. "For God's sake! This child's name is Sydelle's name broken up!" Tears began to fall from Mac's eyes. "There's too many similarities Sturgis!"  
  
"Mac…" Harm said, his voice soothing and calm.   
  
Sturgis' expression and stance had not changed. He expected this, "that's why I accepted this album…and why I had initially asked for prints and medical history…" Sturgis looked sincere and sounded just as sincere, "I honestly see the similarities…and I know how much you both hurt…what you've been through…and if this child /is/ your daughter…I'm going to do everything in my power and I know you will too to find this child and bring these people up on charges."  
  
Mac calmed herself. She could tell Sturgis was on their side and that she was being difficult, but he seemed to understand. "Thththththank you for understanding…" she told him relaxing and leaning back against Harm.  
  
Sturgis held out the book to them, which Mac accepted. "I'm going to stop by and get the medical records…I'll be back," he said and then quickly exited the house.  
  
Mac and Harm sat down with Harm's arm around her and opened the album. Tears immediately began to fall from both sets of eyes. A picture of a small baby girl in a pink fitted baby hat was on the first page right above a birth certificate that read 'Sydney Marie Collins', Jennifer and Robert Collins were listed as the parents, Georgetown Memorial Hospital as the hospital, and the date of birth was December 24, 2004. Mac froze and stared at it. "Harm?" she said seeing signs of hope.  
  
"I see it…" Harm said tracing along the bottom of the date and hospital name.  
  
"Look at the middle name…"  
  
"It's different…"  
  
"She /is/ our baby, Harm…" Mac said tears running down her face and emotion caught up in her words.  
  
"We don't /know for sure/," Harm said trying to remain as calm as possible but thinking the same thing.  
  
Sturgis walked in, the records had been waiting for him and he didn't have to walk far. He looked at them both concerned. "Are you two okay?"  
  
"Their baby's birth certificate gives the date of birth one day before Sydelle…at Georgetown Memorial Hospital and the baby's middle name is different on the birth certificate…it's not Elle…it's Marie…" Harm explained.  
  
"That doesn't prove anything…you both know that…" Sturgis warned.  
  
Mac continued to flip through the book and stopped at one of her current pictures. "She doesn't even look like them…"  
  
"Mac…now you two know better…"  
  
"Can't we do like a DNA test?" Harm asked.  
  
"On what?"  
  
"How about a strand of hair?" Mac asked.  
  
"Maybe…" Sturgis said. "I know you two are probably now positive that this /is/ your daughter, but don't get your hopes up too high…the test will prove who she belongs to. Plus there's still the obstacle of finding her let alone the fact that she's thought that Robert and Jennifer Collins were her parents for the last two and a half years."  
  
"We don't even have leads…" Harm said.   
  
Mac took a minute to compose herself, wiping her tears away, and then looked at them. "We'll just have to get this investigation rolling, won't we?" The possibility of find Sydelle had given her new hope. At the moment, JAG wasn't keeping her going…it was the thought that her baby girl was here and that she just had to find her.  
  
"Why don't we get blood samples from both of you and have them run a DNA match?" Sturgis suggested.  
  
Mac and Harm nodded. "Then we should probably question the family and the staff more," Mac said obviously determined.  
  
"She was taken from her bedroom, so our focus should be on base staff. There is a possibility that she's still on base. Also, I think perhaps it would be wise if /I/ were to handle questioning of the par-Major and Lieutenant Collins."  
  
They both nodded once again in agreement. "We'll focus on the base staff."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
**06.24.03  
1800 Zulu  
Seal Beach Naval Base  
Seal Beach, California**  
  
Sturgis was busy tracking down Major Collins while Mac and Harm were questioning staff. Sturgis finally located Robert Collins, "Major Collins!" he shouted running to catch up with him.   
  
Collins halted and waited for Sturgis to catch up. "What can I do for Commander Turner?" Robert Collins asked not looking at him and resumed walking once the commander had caught up with him.  
  
"I have some questions."  
  
"I have a job to do, Commander," he answered coldly.  
  
"You /do/ want your daughter back, don't you?" Turner asked curious after how the major had just spoken to him.  
  
"Of /course/ I do! I just can't sit in my house crying and worrying! I'm still a Major in the US Navy, I have responsibilities."  
  
"I won't take up too much of your time."  
  
"Shouldn't you be questioning people?"  
  
"There are two others doing that right at this moment."  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Commander Rabb and Colonel MacKenzie-Rabb, my colleagues."  
  
"You don't think that my wife or I have anything to do with this do you? I mean, we would never harm our little girl. We love her," Robert Collins said.  
  
"We have to cover /every/ angle, Major. Just like on every case…"  
  
"What do you want to know?"  
  
"If Sydney has any medical problems."  
  
"You have her medical files."  
  
"I'm not a doctor."  
  
"She has asthma…" Robert said stopping and rubbing his temples realizing he hadn't thought about that. "Oh my god…if she has an attack and doesn't have her inhaler…"  
  
"What is it triggered by?"  
  
"Heavy dust…smoke…she's allergic to a certain kind of grass but it only grows in South Carolina. Oh my god! I can't believe I didn't think of it sooner!"  
  
"When was the last time she had an attack?"  
  
"I..Iiiiii I don't remember…awhile ago…"  
  
"Well, that's good and it explains why you didn't remember it right off," Sturgis pointed out. "Don't worry Major, we'll find Sydney."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
  
**06.24.03  
1800 Zulu  
Seal Beach Naval Base  
Seal Beach, California**  
  
Harm and Mac were questioning all of the security staff that were on duty the night Sydney Collins was taken. So far they were coming up with nothing. "She couldn't have just vanished…" Harm said walking with Mac.  
  
"We /have/ to find her, Harm…"  
  
"I know we do, Sarah. I know…"  
  
"Where could she be?... I mean if no one saw her taken?!"  
  
"We /will/ find her."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
**TBC  
**


	4. Sydney or Sydelle?

**Author's Note:** Okay! Okay! I admit, Major is not a Navy rank (I actually knew that), but with all that's been going on in my life in the last few months I'm surprised that I can write at all…though its all been about torturing Harm and Mac…oops? OH! And someone wanted to know what / / these stood for and they're just there for emphasis on that word instead of capitalizing, which I'm getting used to using instead of capitalizing from a RPG I play in. And yes this chapter is short, but it felt like a good stopping point at the end...  
  
**  
Chapter 4 - Sydney or Sydelle?**  
  
**  
06.24.03  
2000 Zulu  
Seal Beach Naval Base  
Seal Beach, California  
**  
"So, what do we have?" Sturgis asked Harm and Mac so that they could go over the case aloud.  
  
"We have to find her," Mac said quietly carefully turning through the album making sure to mentally capture every image.  
  
"We will, Mac," Harm said and then looked at Sturgis. "No one knows anything, that's all we got out of the base staff."  
  
"Well…it seems that we have even more of a problem then," Sturgis said remembering what Lt Commander Collins had told him. "Sydney has asthma."  
  
"What?!" Harm exclaimed at the new information and Mac looked up at Sturgis.  
  
"So now it's even more important we find her soon," Mac said.  
  
"Yes," Sturgis said calmly. "And I think it's time to call the admiral and inform him of what we've found so far."  
  
"If you do that, then he'll pull us off the investigation!" Mac said referring to her and Harm.  
  
"There are rules for a reason, Mac."  
  
"Sturgis, just wait…until tomorrow…then we'll have the results of the DNA test…we'll know for sure if she's really Sydney Collins or if she's really Sydelle Rabb," Harm said, his voice as calm as Sturgis.  
  
Sturgis tilted his head slightly at the suggestion. "Look, I know this has to be extremely hard on both of you, but keeping information from the admiral isn't going to help this case and isn't going to help Sydney OR Sydelle."  
  
"We're just asking for another day," Harm said, his eyes pleading with Sturgis.  
  
"Please?" Mac asked, joining in with Harm.  
  
Sturgis shook his head, "I have got to be crazy to even consider this…" He sighed, "fine, but when we get the test results we call the admiral, BEFORE they're opened."  
  
"Why before?" Harm asked curiously.  
  
"That way you don't run off before we talk to the admiral if they come back that it is Sydelle."  
  
"Come on Sturgis! We wouldn't do tha…" Harm stopped mid sentence at Sturgis' look of not believing. "Okay, okay, we probably would."  
  
"But what do you expect?! If she IS our baby girl, then these people have had her for two and a half years of her life!" Mac said.  
  
"I understand, Mac, but in order to take any of this to court at all we need to do things by the book," Sturgis told her knowing how hard it had been on them both through the years. "If this child is yours…won't you want to go after the people who are responsible?"  
  
"Of course…" Harm started.  
  
"Then we do this MY way," Sturgis interrupted.  
  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
**  
06.25.03  
1800 Zulu  
Seal Beach Naval Base  
Seal Beach, California**  
  
Sturgis dialed JAG Headquarters in Falls Church and waited for someone to pick up and redirect him. Finally after a few minutes he was directed to the admiral's office. "Um yes, Admiral? This is Commander Turner…yes, Sir, the investigation is going…Sir, we've run into a bit of a problem…the missing girl could be Commander Rabb and Colonel MacKenzie's daughter…yes, Sir…yes, Sir…well Sir, we have the results and I wanted to open them while I had you on the phone…yes, Sir…" Sturgis opened the envelope and pulled out the paper that had the results. "Yes, Sir. Yes, Sir. I'll let them know…Yes,Sir…understood…bye, Sir." Sturgis hung up the phone.  
  
Harm and Mac were on the edges of their seats wanting to know the results. "Well?!" Harm prompted.  
  
"Sydney Collins is actually Sydelle Rabb…" Sturgis said slowly.  
  
"Really?!" Harm said weakly in shock.  
  
"She's been on a naval base the entire time?" Mac asked tears falling down her face.  
  
"The admiral said that you two are to be taken off the case, but with new information do not have to fly back to Falls Church until after the investigation has been conducted," Sturgis explained.  
  
"But you'll keep us in the loop, right?" Harm asked.  
  
"I'll tell you both what I can," Sturgis told them. "You'll need to rent a room…"  
  
Harm sighed, "just…try to tell us as much as possible…please?"   
  
"I can do that."  
  
"Is the admiral sending anyone else out to help?" Mac asked curious since they were being pulled.  
  
"He's sending Bud. He'll be here later tonight."  
  
"We'll be out of here by then and call you with the number of where we'll be staying," Harm said.  
  
Sturgis nodded. "Don't worry you two, we WILL find Sydelle."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
**TBC…**  
  
  
**Chloe:** How come boys don't get any smarter with age?  
**Mac: ** That's one of nature's greatest mysteries.  
  
_(Yeah, Baby!)_  



End file.
